Result: Durham 2nd XI (286 & 174/3; Greenwell 66*, Jones 46, Steel 40*; Haddow 3/55) beat Northamptonshire 2nd XI (264 & 195; Salisbury 5/47, Whitehead 4/25) by seven wickets
Ross Greenwell’s unbeaten 66 helped Durham 2nd XI chase down 174 for victory on the final day of the Second XI Championship match against Northamptonshire at Emirates Riverside.
An opening stand of 92 with Michael Jones (46) helped break the back of what was potentially a tricky afternoon run chase.
Three wickets for left-arm spinner Conner Haddow stalled the run chase somewhat before a blistering knock by Scott Steel saw Durham over the line alongside Greenwell.
The opener played the holding role while Steel smashed 40 off 25 balls, with 36 of those runs coming in boundaries, to see Neil Killeen’s side home.
Matt Salisbury’s five-for earlier in the day contributed the quick wickets Durham needed to force a result, with leg-spinner Ben Whitehead adding four.
The former’s three-wicket burst ripped through the Northants middle order, with Whitehead mopping up the tail for impressive figures of 4/25 off 19 overs with ten maidens.
Close, Day Two: Durham 2nd XI (286) trail Northamptonshire 2nd XI (264; Home 78; Smithson 3/37 & 89/3) by 64 runs
Ryan Davies’ excellent 155 with the bat helped Durham score 286 and finish Day Two 64 runs behind Northamptonshire 2nd XI.
Davies’ majestic effort saw him reach the impressive total in just 145 balls and a strong contribution from Josh Coughlin (49) helped Durham finish 22 runs ahead of Northamptonshire at the end of their innings.
Durham then took three industrious wickets before close with the visitors finishing on 89/3 with Matt Salisbury, Ben Whitehead and Gareth Harte each taking a wicket.
Close, Day One: Durham 2nd XI (9/0) trail Northamptonshire 2nd XI (264; Home 78; Smithson 3/37) by 255 runs
Durham’s bowlers fought back well to bowl Northamptonshire out for 264 on the first day of the Second XI Championship clash at Emirates Riverside.
From a position of 141/1 in the 41st over, Durham were batting by the end of the day after a strong showing in the field during the final two sessions.
Left-arm seamer Oliver Smithson led the fightback with three wickets with Gavin Main, Gareth Harte & Matt Salisbury all taking two apiece.
Northants had made a solid start through the top three, with Charlie Home (78) & Saif Zaib (58) putting on 96 for the second wicket.
Liam Trevakis bowled the latter before Smithson took two quick wickets & Home was yorked by Main.
Chris McBride, playing for the visitors after three sudden injuries left them short, held together the lower order with a resolute 33 before falling to Harte.
Ross Greenwell & Michael Jones safely negotiated two overs before the close to leave Durham on 9/0.